Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or better known as “BJJ” is one of the last remaining martial arts that forces you really and truly earn belts.

BJJ at the adult level only has 5 belts. They are:

White _____
Blue ______
Purple ______
Brown ______
Black ______

That’s it, just 5 belts. Aside from the white belt, which you’ll usually earn upon attendance of your first class, the other 4 take many years to obtain.

It’s not uncommon for it to take upwards of 15+ years to earn a black belt in BJJ. BJJ is a very intricate art, with many techniques to master.

The overall level of commitment one needs to progress through the belts in BJJ is much higher then say a style like Tae Kwon Do.

A BJJ Black Belt still means something and carries a lot of weight in not just the MMA world but in martial arts as a whole.

People laugh at a karate black belt but no one questions the same rank in BJJ. A person who holds the rank of Black Belt in BJJ commands immediate respect.

When someone gets promoted in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (also known as Gracie JuJitsu) it’s a big deal. Belt promotions here at Ivey League MMA don’t come around often, so when they do, people take notice.

This is something I really love about the art of Jiu Jitsu, When you earn a belt you really EARNED IT. In that way BJJ is in my opinion a honest martial art.

I say honest because you can’t fake it in BJJ. You can’t fake being a Black Belt in BJJ. Fake BJJ Black Belts can be spotted a mile away.

I can look at someone rolling around on the mats and know almost instantly whether or not they’re a real black belt. You can’t fake skill in BJJ.

Lately I’ve been seeing videos on Facebook of people busting fake BJJ black belts. Yup these phonies get called out in front of everyone for being a fraud. Sad.

For some reason they always get busted while teaching at a UFC Gym….hmmm.

Oh real quick before I run right past this. Kids work off of a different belt color system then adults. Kids/Youth belt ranks in BJJ go like this:

White _____
Gray ______
Yellow ______
Orange ______
Green ______

BJJ Black Belt = Respect.

Those who train under me know I don’t just hand out belts. You’ve gotta earn your belt here and when you do, it’s a moment you’ll never forget.

Shoot I still remember each and every one of my belt promotions, from blue to purple to brown and finally, black.

Each promotion has a special place in my heart and I consider them my fondest memories. And because of this, I know just how excited it can be to get promoted in BJJ.

Okay not to get too far off what was to be my original subject, BJJ Belt Promotions at Ivey League! That’s the bullet point I was getting at I swear!

During the month of July I promoted a total of 6 students in the art of BJJ. Those students are the following:

Teresa Ives – Purple Belt
Chris “CH” Houck – Blue Belt
Christian Barcikowski – Orange Belt
Magnus Benz – Orange Belt
Jacob Miller – Orange Belt
Lania Nick – Yellow Belt

Congrats to all! How much does this mean to a student?

Well just as an example, after being promoted last Wednesday night, Miss Teresa broke down in tears giving a speech about how hard she’d worked and how much this purple belt meant to her.

Both kids and adults alike have cried their eyes out in happiness over being promoted in BJJ. It happens a lot and not just females, oh no, I’ve witnesses plenty of grown men cry during a belt promotion.

That’s pretty powerful stuff when you’re so overjoyed that you cry. It happens a lot I assure you.

Keep training, keep working hard, keep asking questions and studying up and sooner or later, you’ll reach the rank of BJJ Black Belt.

It’s a long journey for sure but when it’s all said and done, it’s totally worth it. Other black belts will tell you the same.

Check out the pics I posted below as well as the video showing Magnus and Juji’s reaction to their promotion to Orange Belt. It’s priceless.